Friday, January 23, 2015

Even if it's been almost a week since our beloved Pope Francis left Manila, Pope Francis hangover is still in the air and will remain so for a very long time. It was a short 5-day visit yes but the effect Pope Francis had on everyone is beyond a lifetime. Since papsie and momsie have seen Pope Francis on January 16, 2015 in MOA Arena during the Pope Meeting with the Families, they passed on to us their Marriage Encounter Foundation of the Philippines, Inc. (MEFP) marshalls IDs so we could see our beloved Pope. And so, my sister and I got the opportunity to be marshalls during the final mass of the Holy Pope on January 18, 2015 at Rizal Park.

Even if the event was at 3:30 in the afternoon, we left our hotel which is just along Roxas Boulevard, supposedly a few minute walk to the venue, at 4 in the morning wanting to be ahead of the expected millions of Filipino attendees said to be going there to see the Pope. Surprisingly (or not), we reached Quirino Grandstand and our designated quadrant at 7:30am! After all the pushings and swayings of the huge crowd and kilometric lines of people, we found a good enough spot to stand along while we wait for Pope to come.

At a little over 8 am, we had our breakfast of cashew nuts. Our resources were very limited I tell you. We needed to budget our food and drinks lest we wont survive the day. We had 2 pieces of apples, 3 bottled water, one 'mamon', a medium sized chips and the nuts.

At 10am, it started raining. Did I mention we didn't bring raincoats? Yes! The rain did not stop and we got totally soaked! A good samaritan gave my sister a plastic raincoat because she was already trembling. Frankly, we even thought of going back to the hotel already. But our desire to see the Pope kept us from leaving. The seemingly unbearable situation ironically gave way to a more festive mood and the energetic enthusiasm of the people were rubbing off on everyone.

At 12noon, we shared an apple and the chips and sipped water. Rain still pouring hard. We're drenched and the air stream wasn't helping as well. The harrowing cold making us weak. You know those times when you need to unleash the power of your mind to control your weakness, manage your emotions and focus on the very reason for being? We love the Pope and we wanted to see him.

At 2pm, we shared the 'mamon' and sipped water. Now, we only had an apple left and planned to consume it after the event. The rest of the time was spent watching the monitor which was showing the happenings in UST, hoping to see my niece Aly, who was so lucky for having been chosen as 1 of the 10 school representatives in her school to be sent to UST Sports Field for the Pope Meeting with the Youth.

The crowd started cheering relentlessly when finally, Pope Francis arrived. We were all rejuvenated and I was sobbing! Since it was our first time to see the Pope, we really did not know what to expect. How does it really feel to be in the presence of Pope Francis? It was indescribable! It was rare! My heart jumped out of my chest! It eased everything beyond the physical, beyond exhaustion and beyond discomforts. The feeling is truly beyond anyone's dream. Allow me to share some pictures showing the effect of the overwhelming presence of our dear Pope Francis.

Our very own version of a 'before' and 'after' shot. This one taken at around 8 a.m. just when we reached our quadrant with the rest of the MEFP marshalls. No rain yet. LOL. The other pic was taken at around 6pm shortly after Pope Francis left Rizal Park and after hours of.enduring the rain and of course, the hunger. LOL.

We will forever be grateful to God for sending "the nearest thing to Him on earth." The feeling of seeing a holy man on earth is truly a very humbling experience. We will always pray for you Pope Francis!

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Good thing about the holidays is that it gives us the time to relax and time to explore new places. Like this newly opened museum in Cubao, Quezon City - Art in Island. Art in Island is an interactive art museum, the biggest 3D art museum in Asia. It opened to the public on December 25, 2014. Lucky enough when we got there yesterday, it was not as crowded as I expected it to be. I remember this holiday being only applicable for NCR. According to the ticket seller posted inside the ticket booth just before the museum entrance, the crowd is beginning to grow each day.

Luis and I, together with my sis-in-law and Luis' cousins, enjoyed the over two hours of interacting with the art pieces, and taking as many pictures as we want. So much different from all the other museums out there. In Art in Island, one could be PART OF THE ART!

Work your illusion and allow yourself to be deceived while you actually help the artwork achieve and complete its purpose. You be the one to decide what stories you actually want to see in your pictures.

Now if this intro is not enough to tickle your fancy and stimulate your curiosity, then the following images may just do it for you:

"my wife and my mother-in-law"

HYPNOTIC PORTRAIT

YUMMY BRAINS

FRUSTRATED SURFER DREAMS

PIRANHA MANIA

ATTACK OF THE CRABS

BURGLAR!

AN APPLE A DAY

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE & THE STORK

MY WEIGHT IN GOLD

SEA LIONS ILLUSION

SPIDERMAN DREAMS

JACK & THE GIANT

THE PUPPETEER

HIPPOPOTAMUS IN MANILA

THE EVE BEFORE CHRISTMAS WITH SANTA

LOVE OAP

THE APOCALYPSE - the last battle of good vs. evil

GUARDIAN ANGEL

THREE KINGS AND THE ALALAY

THE NATIVITY

RUNNING WITH THE BULLS

VENICE ON MY MIND

EUROPEAN ESCAPE

VIKING FANTASY

THE KING OF THE JUNGLE

PHARAOH"S REVENGE

LOST IN EGYPT

HANGING BROKEN BRIDGE

THE ROAD TO HEAVEN

ADAM & EVE

CUPID'S ASS

FARMER'S PAINTERS ALIVE

STARRY STARRY NIGHT

POLAR BEAR SELFIE

HERE KITTY KITTY

BALLOON ESCAPE

GIANT CROCODILE ATTACK

DRAGON FANTASY

ATTACK OF THE CRABS

Check out the official website of Art in Island to know more about its fantasy zone, aqua zone, animal zone, central hall, religion zone and its more than 50 stunning 3D art pieces! (credits to Art in Island fb acct and ourawesomeplanet.com)